Mr Bobi Tiglao couldn’t have been more succinctly on point in his explosive Manila Times article today.
We are a sovereign nation. Why do we allow a foreign power to fund media entities dedicated to painting the duly elected president black, in the hope that the masses, or the military, would be roused to topple him?
But that is exactly what Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), Vera Files, the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR), and Rappler are guilty of to the tune of millions of dollars in funding from foreign governments according to Tiglao.
Recall earlier that top Yellow blogger Jover Laurio of Pinoy Ako Blog too was exposed as a paid hack. Following these exposés, including ones from RJ Nieto’s Fact-checking the fact-checker: Over 50% of Vera Files funding from CIA-linked orgs, these supposed “truth sayers” have been exposed as receiving foreign funds. They are all anti-Duterte. And to think they have been accusing us for years of receiving funds from the Marcoses even without providing proof. Such hypocrites!
I’m pretty sure the journalists tagged as receiving foreign funds will cry foul and accuse the Duterte govt of trying to stifle “dissent”. But as journalists, they should be publishing facts, not opinions. And besides, if they broke the law, they have to pay the price.
In life, things are not always what they seem.